Notre Dame fire: First look inside destroyed cathedral

Footage has emerged showing the destruction caused by the blaze at the Notre-Dame cathedral.

The father and daughter in this snap have been found after the photo went viral. Picture: Twitter/@brookeawindsorSource:Twitter

After a global search, the father and daughter snapped outside Notre Dame just minutes before it was engulfed in flames have finally been tracked down.

The tender moment between dad and child, which was snapped by 22-year-old Brooke Windsor on Monday, suddenly became far more poignant when the 850-year-old cathedral was decimated by a ferocious blaze just an hour later.

I took this photo as we were leaving #NotreDame about an hour before it caught on fire. I almost went up to the dad and asked if he wanted it. Now I wish I had. Twitter if you have any magic, help him find this 🙏🏼 pic.twitter.com/pEu33ubqCK

After realising the photograph’s significance, Ms Windsor took to Twitter in a desperate attempt to find the dad and share the precious memory with him.

“I took this photo as we were leaving #NotreDame about an hour before it caught on fire. I almost went up to the dad and asked if he wanted it. Now I wish I had. Twitter if you have any magic, help him find this,” she posted.

The flames were extinguished minutes before the cathedral’s total destruction. Picture: AP Photo/Vanessa PenaSource:AP

The photo soon went viral, receiving 225,112 retweets and 470,276 likes in just five days.

Yesterday, she revealed the search had been a success.

While the man in the moving photograph has chosen to remain anonymous, he confirmed the picture would be treasured.

An official, who spoke anonymously about the ongoing probe, told the Associated Press investigators still did not have the green light to work in the cathedral and search in the rubble for safety reasons.

Monday’s blaze destroyed much of the inside of the famous landmark and caused the spire to crash to the ground below.

President Emmanuel Macron says the cathedral will be rebuilt. Picture: Bertrand Guay/AFPSource:AFP

After raging for hours, the fire was eventually extinguished with the building just minutes away from total destruction.

Several billionaires have already vowed to donate a whopping £886 million ($A1.6 billion) to help rebuild the iconic building, with French president Emmanuel Macron claiming it will be rebuilt “even more beautifully” within just five years.